Street Fighter Collection

Capcom delivers a solid glimpse at fighting's past

Capcom has tugged on the udder of the Street Fighter franchise cash cow for long enough. With Street Fighter finally going polygonal, who needs the old Street Fighters? Oh, I can't hide it any longer... I do. No matter how old Street Fighter gets, I'll still waste a quarter on that stupid game. It's like the PacMan of fighters -- it started it all and you never get sick of it.

Street Fighter 2 Collection comes with three games: Super Street Fighter 2, Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo, and Street Fighter Alpha 2 Gold. And for those who aren't familiar with the all the Street Fighters, Super Street Fighter 2 is the SF sequel that introduced new characters like Fei Long, Tee Hawk, Dee-Jay, and Akuma.

Street Fighter Alpha 2 Gold stars Cammy and Evil Ryu, and is pretty much Alpha 2 with a few tweaks. Capcom has adjusted some of the timing with the characters in this game to make them more balanced. Honestly, though, it's still Alpha 2.

The games look and move identically to their arcade counterparts. However, the one and only complaint I have is the load time. I hate to refer to a Saturn game, but if you've played any of the Street Fighters on the Saturn, you probably noticed that the nasty load time doesn't exist. It's OK for RPGs to have it, maybe a little in racing games, but in fighting games? No.

What's really cool about this collection is that it includes the best of the Street Fighter games. It has your traditional, almost archaic, Street Fighter 2 gameplay that basically consisted of two fighters throwing projectiles at each other. But it also includes the Alpha game that adds a lot more to the mere jumping over projectiles and tap-tap throws by adding new elements such as Alpha Counters, which can counter an opponent's offensive attack more easier.

If you're a long-time Street Fighter lover, or you're just yearning for some classic 2D fighting action, I suggest picking up Street Fighter 2 Collection. It's three arcade classics in one.